Part Eighteen

Upon leaving the café, the Doctor, River, and Emily retuned to the TARDIS and went to Torchwood. The Doctor had plugged in the coordinates that Jack had provided for the Hub before he had left the Doctor and Emily at Donna's house about four years earlier. They were shortly outside the Hub.

When the Doctor figured out where they were (he suspected it was Edinburgh), he phoned Jack. "Hullo?" Jack answered.

"Jack, it's the Doctor. We're here."

"Oh! Right, come on in. It's open for you," Jack told him before they hung up.

When they walked through the doors into the Hub, the Doctor found himself in a large, surprisingly bright room with cement walls and stairwells. Then, they found Jack, who was on the balcony above. "Doc!" he called out.

"Jack… I come bearing guests!" the Doctor called up to Jack.

"I can see that," Jack said as he came down the stairs.

When Jack reached the trio of time travelers, he wore a look of interest. "I feel like there's a story here," he said, gesturing to River.

River's eyes widened. "I think I've seen you before," she remarked.

"Really? I would have remembered if we had met…" Jack replied in a slightly suggestive tone.

"Really Jack? Really?" the Doctor sighed. "She's pregnant."

River turned to the Doctor and positioned a hand on her hip. "And what is that supposed to mean?" she asked him in interest.

His face paled and he started to backpedal. "Well… I mean… it's inappropriate given the circumstances with Emily, and well, you're pregnant, and he's a playboy and I'm here, and it's weird, and it's inappropriate," he rambled quickly.

"Just because I'm pregnant doesn't mean I'm not still a woman," River replied jokingly, winking at Jack because she knew that it would grind the Doctor's gears.

To further her point, River struck a pose and made a long, swooping gesture at herself before snorting with laughter. Jack burst out laughing. "Doc, where did you find this one?" he asked.

"This is River Song," the Doctor remarked, smiling at River's antics.

"River Song? Sounds like a set of lyrics I've heard before," Jack remarked.

"I'm sure you have heard those lyrics," River replied. "My parents were very musical and loved classical music. They especially enjoyed classical music of the 21st century."

Emily was staring around the room with a dreamy look on her face. It was clear that she liked this place. "Daddy, what's that?" Emily said, pointing up at the ceiling.

The Doctor looked up and saw a huge orb hovering in the air. "What is that?" the Doctor asked of Jack.

Jack, however, was looking at Emily with interest. "This is Emily?" he asked.

"The one and only," River remarked before addressing the Doctor's question. "Doctor, it looks like that is an Arebequian Halo-Craft. They're how the Arebequians traveled, they're like cars. This one is in excellent condition though."

"She looks different than I remember," Jack remarked, ignoring River's explanation.

"What do you mean? Of course she looks different. The last time you saw her, she was able to fit into the crook of my arm."

"No… she should have redder hair. I remember she had redder hair and more freckles."

"Maybe your memories are muddled."

"Nope… pretty sure she had really red hair and more freckles. Instead, she looks more like you, down to the floppy hair and impish grin."

"Well, sometimes timelines don't adjust properly," the Doctor replied. "For example, you told me that Emmy would have the cure for Donna in quite a few years… she's already figured it out."

River had taken a seat in the chair nearest to her, and Emily had curled up in the chair next to River. "I actually think she looks more like you now. Does that happen? Gallifreyan children changing to look like their parents as the parents regenerate?"

The Doctor turned to look at her. "Actually… that does happen," he remarked. "Why didn't I think of that? And I didn't think it'd happen with a human hybrid child either. Interesting. Good call."

"See," River said to Jack, "this is why he keeps me around."

Both men laughed, found chairs in the main workspace, and then went about talking. They spent hours catching up, River interjecting something every now and then. Emily was napping against River, completely dead to the world. River was quiet because she hadn't been feeling too well since they'd left the café. Her head was throbbing painfully and she couldn't ease the pain that had settled in her back with the stretching she'd been able to do to get rid of the discomfort before just wasn't helping anymore. Secretly, as the Doctor and Jack caught up, she wondered if she was going into labor.

"River?"

The Doctor had been saying her name for about a minute now. "River? Are you okay?" he asked her as he nudged her shoulder.

She blinked a few times and then nodded slightly. The Doctor doubted this was the truth, so he brought his hand up to her forehead. "River, you're burning up," he remarked.

Jack leaned forward and felt her forehead. "He's right. Do you want to go lay down?" he asked River.

"No, I'm fine," she replied in barely a whisper.

The Doctor was already standing up held out his hand to River. "You're tired and you're running a fever. Maybe we should get back home," he remarked.

She shook her head. "I'm fine here," she replied.

"Jack and I will help you," the Doctor promised.

"I'm very handy," Jack replied.

"Don't start," the Doctor warned.

"I didn't mean for it to sound like that," Jack added humbly.

River sighed and planted her hands on the armrests of the chair so she could push herself up. As she tried to stand up, she hesitated. "Is something wrong?" the Doctor asked, his hand out, ready to help steady her.

"I don't think I can move," River said, her eyes starting to fill with terror. "I think something's wrong."

Jack jumped into action. "I'll call Martha," he told the Doctor before he ran off to go phone Martha.

River sat back down in the chair slowly, now a very pale shade of pink or a very pink shade of white. The Doctor was crouched down beside her, looking up into her eyes. "Are you having any pain?"

"My back is a little stiff, and my head is throbbing," she informed him.

"Come here," he gestured as he placed his hands on her temples and closed his eyes. "Breathe a little for me."

Instead of calming River, she let out a harsh cry. "Oh!"

The Doctor's eyes flew open. "What? Did I hurt you?"

"No, no, no… here," she murmured as she started rubbing a spot on the lower right of her abdomen. "Oh god… what if the baby's coming?"

"Well, we've got Martha on the way, and she's good with delivering babies."

"No, Doctor… this isn't right. I was supposed to have the baby at home."

"And Emily was supposed to be born in the TARDIS. She was born in a convent on Appares Acwin. The plan is changing."

Jack came jogging back into the room. "Martha will be here in ten minutes. She says to get River into bed in case she's in labor."

"I think she's in labor," the Doctor informed Jack.

"Good, well, then, getting her to bed still stands."

"Doctor, this is wrong! It's not supposed to happen like this!" River cried out, the fear now completely present in her voice.

He pulled her forehead down to his, so that they touched, and looked her in the eyes. "Nothing will happen to you. You are safe. You've got an army, we're all capable. We need you to be strong now and to relax."

"I know very little about 21st century medicine. I know quite a lot about 51st century medicine though."

"Trust me, you're in good hands."

River sighed and blinked back her tears. She could sense that something wasn't right, wasn't normal, about what was happening to her, but she knew that the Doctor didn't make empty promises of this caliber. She had always trusted him, but this moment, for the first time, she had reason to think that maybe the Doctor was wrong.

"Can you walk?"

River tried to stand once again, but felt her legs start to collapse under her. The Doctor instantly scooped himself up her left side, holding her up from under her arms. Jack quickly took up the right side, shooting the Doctor a look of worry. River's tears finally got the better of her, and she started crying softly. "You're going to be fine," Jack promised River, the woman he'd just met.

When the two men had gotten River into a bed in a room that was presumably for people who were working long shifts, Jack left the room to go wait for Martha. River lay on her back in the bed, staring up at the cement ceiling while the Doctor started a scan with the sonic screwdriver. He said nothing, but wore a slightly concerned look on his face. "Where does it hurt?"

"My head," River reminded him. "And now my back, because the baby's right on my spine and pelvis. Can I turn onto my side?"

He shook his head. "Not quite yet. How about we prop you up?"

River propped herself up on her elbows as the Doctor stuffed some pillows behind her head and shoulders. "Okay, lean back and let me know how that feels."

"It's fine. Thanks," she answered weakly.

Martha arrived shortly, and after a quick exam, she came out of the room to report her findings to the two men. "She's in labor," Martha said, certifying their suspicions.

"Well, are you equipped to deliver a baby?" the Doctor asked.

"I can certainly do so, but I don't want to deliver the baby in there. Can I use the medical center here?" she asked Jack.

Jack nodded. "We'll help her to the medical center."